Help with 1 night in Oregon
 

We will be staying in Hood River for one night on our way to the Washington coast. We would like to see Mount St.Helen's before we leave this area. Can anyone suggest a place we might stay for one night so we could do a side trip there. We do not want to go to Portland, do not like cities. How about Longview or is that getting too far away? We still want to experience the Columbia Gorge so we do not want to drive too far out of our way. Also we will only have about 1/2 day. Is this enough time?

I think this is doable if you rush. What I really want to know is, what do you mean by 1/2 a day? Are you starting at noon and going to dark, or what?

If you drive on interstate hwys, you could get from Hood River to Castle Rock, the Mt. St. Helens main entrance, in about 2 plus hours, I'd guess. Longview is close to Castle Rock. I believe it takes a couple of hours to get to the Johnston Ridge observatory and a couple more to drive back. So count on at least 4 to 5 hours on the mountain without stops, and you will definitely want to stop.
I'd go first to the first Nat. Pk Visitors center to get oriented, pick up my park pass and info on the sights and programs. Also, if it fits with your timing, see the film there. It focuses on the chronology - the lead up to the explosion, and also the human impact of the blast. The survivors stories are incredible.
In a total rush, I'd skip the second visitors center (whah!), and go straight to the Johnston Ridge Observatory. Again, see the movie, which is on the geology of the explosion and is very well done. Walk the trail there. (Count on at least 1/2 hour at the first and an hour at Johnstone Ridge)
So, all in all, I'd say you might think in terms of 7 hours on the mountain itself, once you get off of I-5. So, that makes it a 9 to 9 1/2 hour half day. In summer, the sun sets late, so maybe this would work.
Why not call the park and ask them how long they think it would take, and also check the map for drive time on the highways. It's really worth it if you can fit it in.

Thanks for the info Orcas. I think we will pass on Mount St. Helen's. I was thinking about going to Longview and spending the night and the next morning leaving for Mount St. Helen's very early to get there when they open.

I thought we would have time to view the mountain and then drive back to Longview. Sound like too much to do in one day. Thanks for all of your help.

I don't think it takes as long as Orcas says. If I understand, you're starting off in Hood River, wanting to see MSH, then overnighting in the area before heading out to the coast the next day. Is that right? If so, then you can easily accomplish your mission.

Hood River is in the middle of the main scenic area of the Gorge. From a start in Hood River, and stopping at various scenic places, it takes around 3 hours tops to see the Columbia Gorge highlights. From there, you cross the Columbia on I-205 and get to the turnoff for MSH (at Castle Rock, <i>not</i> at Woodland) in around an hour. From the freeway into the Johnston Ridge Visitors Center (the farthest and best) it's around an hour and 15 or 20 minutes. Look around for an hour or so (not much else to do) then another hour plus back to I-5. There are numerous motels etc. in the Castle Rock/Longview/Kelso area, or, if it's still early enough (say 5 PM or thereabouts, you can still drive out to Long Beach along WA SR 4 (a beautiful ride along the north bank of the Columbia) and get to the coast long before sunset. Or, you can overnight somewhere near the freeway and get to the coast quite early the next day, easily making the Olympic NP coastal area or rainforest valleys the next day with time to spare.

Actually, I'm with Gardylou on this. We used to go from Portland and do it in one day. It made for a great day trip and we took all our visitors there. It was an hour drive each way to the first visitors center. So, if you're going to and from Longview, I think you would actually have time to visit all the visitor's centers in one day. I don't think you'd regret it.